In one aspect, the invention relates to a mixer for use in an atomizing nozzle. In another aspect, the invention relates to an atomizing nozzle. In yet another aspect, the invention relates to atomizing the oil feed to a furnace, such as for the production of carbon black, with an atomizing nozzle.
Good dispersion of the oil feedstock is required when the production of carbon black is desired from an oil furnace. Usually, the oil feedstock is a heavy oil or oil residium, since such feedstocks are plentiful, cheap, and have a high carbon content.
Atomization of heavy oil feedstocks, however, to achieve dispersion is difficult. The heat input required to vaporize many such feedstocks is sufficient in many instances to cause pyrolysis of the feedstock and coke deposition in an undesirable manner. Where the feedstock is not broken up into sufficiently small particles, it can penetrate from its release point to the reactor wall and form deposits which, as they slough off, cause grit contamination in the final carbon black product. Available atomizing bifluid nozzles for disintegrating the oil feedstock do not in all instances break the oil up into a sufficiently fine atomizate to prevent grit unless high volumes of atomizing fluid are passed through the nozzle together with the oil feed. This technique results in other changes in the properties of the carbon black product, such as a change in the structure as measured by DBP.
A nozzle for efficiently atomizing a heavy oil feed with low consumption of atomizing fluid would clearly be very desirable for use in a carbon black reactor.